Estée Lauder names North America, UK and Ireland leadership changes

By

Obi Anyanwu

Published
Apr 12, 2017

The Estée Lauder Companies announced on Tuesday the retirement of Thia Breen, Group President of North America, after 40 years with the company. Chris Good, President of UK and Ireland, will succeed Breen as President, North America, and Philippe Warnery, current GM, Canada, will succeed Good as Senior Vice President and General Manager, U.K. and Ireland. The changes are effective on July 1, 2017.

 
Breen in 2009 became the first executive to serve as President, North America, for the billion-dollar company, and she was promoted to Group President in 2012. As President, North America, she created strategic capabilities to diversify and strengthen the company’s portfolio in North America, and helped establish the organizational structure of the Canada business.
 
The executive joined the beauty company in 1977 as an account executive for Clinique in Los Angeles. She climbed the ranks of the company holding sales manager roles, before being named Senior Vice President, National Sales Manager of Clinique in 1996; Senior Vice President, General Manager of Clinique North America in 2001; and Global Brand President, Estée Lauder in 2007.

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“Thia’s outstanding professional achievements and her impressive career trajectory from Clinique Account Executive to Group President will continue to inspire all of us to push the boundaries of leadership growth,” said Fabrizio Freda, President and CEO.
 
Breen currently serves as Chair of the Personal Care Products Council (PCPC), the national trade organization for the cosmetics and personal care, and she will continue to serve her current PCPC term through February 2018.
 
Her successor Chris Good has been with Estée Lauder for 15 years, serving as a key member of the EMEA region, as GM of Russia, and as GM of Clinique in the Asia Pacific region. Good has led the UK and Ireland business since 2012 and was promoted to President, UK and Ireland in 2014. Under his leadership, the company’s second largest market generated double-digit compound annual sales growth and tripled its online net sales.

As President, North America, Good will continue to serve as a member of the Executive Leadership Team, and he will report to Freda.

 
Finally, Warnery will leverage his experience in his new role as Senior Vice President and General Manager of UK and Ireland. In his previous role as General Manager of Canada, he led growth and profitability for one of Estée Lauder’s fastest-growing affiliates, by implementing a strategy centered on relevancy, digital expansion and social media. Warnery has worked at the company for over 10 years and is credited with expanding the Origins brand into new markets, including China and Mexico.
 
In his new role, Warnery will report to Cedric Prouvé, Group President, International, and he will also join the Executive Leadership Team. A successor will be named at a later date.

Freda added, “Today’s announcement reflects the Company’s thoughtful succession planning philosophy, which is grounded in a passion for the growth and development of our people to reach their highest potential. Chris and Philippe will leverage their best-in-class leadership in go-to-market strategies, including digital innovation, as well as their operational expertise, to fuel sustainable and profitable growth in our two largest markets.”